Edward t



(N0 Medal.)

E. T. GOVELL. BOOK COVER PROTECTOR.

- time rn rns ATENT fai ies.

EDWARD T. (JOVELL, OF NEW BEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OF i ONE-HALFTO EDWIN DEWS, OF SAME PLACE.

BOOK=COVER PROTECTQR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 273,669, dated March 6,1888.

(X model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD T. (JovnLL, a citizen of the United States,residing at New Bedford, in the county of Bristol and State ofMassachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inBook-Cover Protectors; and I do hereby declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, and to lettersor figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of thisspecification. The object of my invention is to protect the edges andcorners of books of all descriptions, but more especially to that classof books which by their own weight are liable to crush the edges oftheir covers or the edges of the backs when placed on shelves.

It is well known that heavy books, when handled in taking them from orplacing them on the shelves or in safes, are in the former case draggedalong said shelves, and in the latter case placed thereon with more orless force, and it is also well known that this handling wears the edgesof the covers and their corners very rapidly, and the want of somesimple and durable device to obviate this injury to books has long beenfelt.

Books have for centuries, I might say, been provided with metallicprotectors upon their corner. These, however, prove injurious, not totheir own cover-corners, but to the covers of other books placedalongside of them, as well as to the furniture or shelves upon whichsuch books are laid for use or upon which they stand. This is due to thefact that all such metallic corner-protectors have two flangesone on theinside and one on the outside of the cover. These protectors areattached to the covers after the book is bound, and the metal used,being very thin, leaves sharp edges all along the outside flange, thatact in a measure like a plane-iron, and shave the covers of booksalongside of them when drawn from or returned to the shelves, or sh avethe table, desk, or other piece of furniture upon which such book may beplaced. The

metal employed, being, as at'oresaid,very thin,

does not afford protection to the backs of books. These guards presentanother inconvenience, in that they have to be made specially for eachbook, so to say, if a neat fit is desired, as it is very seldom the casethat in the making up a lot of books all of them have the same thicknessof cover. This is due not only to the varying thickness of the boardemployed, but also to the varyingamount of pressure such books aresubjected to in their mak- 6o ing up, as will be readily understood bythose acquainted with this branch of the arts. To ai'ford the necessaryprotection to books against the wear of the edges of the covers and thecorners of the latter, it is therefore essential that no sharp edgesshould be presented by the devices employed, either upon the outside ofthe cover or upon its edges, and that the book should be raisedsufficiently from the shelf or other support upon which it is stood onedge to prevent the back of the book-coming in contact therewith.

Various constructions of devices may be employed to effect the desiredends, as hereinafter more fully described, and as shown in theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is an elevation of a bookprovided with inyimproved back, cover edge and cor ner protector. Fig. 2is an inside view of the book-cover, illustrating one method of attaclr8c ing the protector. Fig. 3 is an elevation of a book, showing amodified construction of protector and mode of attaching the same. Figs.

4 and 5 are perspective views of the protector shown in Figs. 1 and 3.Fig. 6 is a face view of the devices represented in Fig. 5. Figs. 7, 8,9, and 10 show fastening devices whereby the protectors are attached tothe book-covers, and Fig. 11 is a perspective view of still anothermodification of construction of protector. 0

Like letters of reference are employed to indicate like parts whereversuch may occur in the above described figures of drawings.

G represents one of the leaves of the cover ofa book, B, and I) is-theback of such book. 5

As stated above, to effectually guard the back of the book, as well asthe edges and corners of the cover, against wear and abrasion, and alsoto effectually prevent the abrasion of the covers of books placed incontact with one Ion another, and the abrasion of the shelves, desks,tables, or other furniture upon which such books may stand or lie, it isnecessary, first, that the edges of the book-covers should be raisedsufficiently above their support to prevent the back from coming intocontact therewith, and, secondly, that there should be no sharpsurfaceor angles exposed to the contact of such other books, or the furnitureupon which they may stand or lie, that would produce abrasions upon thesame. The first result I obtain by using a rectangular metallic guard orprotector, G, of the desired thickness, extending from a point upon thefront edge of the cover, above its corner, around the latter to the backb of the book, or to a point snfficiently close to the said back. toafford a proper bearing for the book and prevent its tilting upon theguard. The construction of these guards G, as well as the means employedto attach them to the book-covers, may vary infinitely, and mustnecessarily vary with the thickness and strength of the covers.

In Figs. 1 and 2 and 4, I have illustrated one construction of protectoror guard Gandmeth- 0d of attaching the same to book-covers which I havefound to answer admirably for very large books, such as bank ormercantile ledgers and analogous heavy books. It consists of acomparatively thick rectangular bar of any suitable metal, eithersemi-cylindrical in cross-section or having its faces 9, as well as thecorner, rounded and polished, and its ends beveled off, as shown. It isofawidth equal to or preferably equal to the thickness of the cover 0,and from one ofits edges extends a flange of thin sheet metal,g,providedwith a number of holes,g This flange, when the bar is attached to thecover, lies upon the inside of the latter; hence the guards are rightandlefthand guards for the corresponding leaves of the cover. In thisconstruction the flange at the corner is split, so as to admit of thebar being slightly bent inward or outward to fit the covers ex-- actly,as these are not always perfectly square. These guards G may be attachedto books already in use by simply punching holes through the covers andattaching the guards in any convenient or desired manner, either bymeans of ordinary tags, T, Fig. 8, or by means of rivets or eyelets, orby means of the screw-buttons S, Fig. 7, consisting of a headed shoe,.9, having a hollow interiorly-screw-threaded stem, 8, and a headed andthreaded shank, s. I prefer, for the class of books described, to employthe latter fastening devices, and in practice the guard is attachedbefore the leather or outer finishing-sheet as well as the innerfinishing-sheet of the cover is applied. The holes in the cover arepunched and countersunk to receive the head of the shoe 8, which head,when the shoe isinserted, lies flush with the outer face of the cover,and is hidden from view by the leather, cloth, or paper finishingsheetof such cover. Upon the inside of the cover the punched holes are alsocountersunk to receive the nicked head of the shank s, which is screwedinto the stem of the shoe of the button, and is also covered from viewby the inside finishing-sheet of the cover. In this manner I obtain asecure attachment for the guard, and the latter presents no surface orsharp edges which can possibly injure either other books or thefurniture upon which the book may be laid or upon which it may stand.

For smaller books, or books of less weight and thicknessof cover, Ipreferably employ a flattened rectangular bar, G, as shown in Figs. 3,5, 6, and 11, having, however, its longitudinal and vertical edgesrounded off and its ends beveled, and, as shown, I preferably use a bardevoid of a flange, either flat or semi cylindrical in cross-section.This bar may be attached to the cover in various ways. It may beprovided with thin projecting fastening-plates 9', provided with holes 9said plates having preferably knife-edges g, to facilitate driving orforcing them into the covers of the books and when in proper positiondrivih g a tack or paperfastener or other suitablefastener through'thecover and plates 9 as shown in Fig. 11; or the bar may be provided withslots 0, and said bar may be attached to the edges of the covers bydriving spear-head-shaped or triangular wedges W, Figs. 3, 5, 9, and 10,into the covers.

As shown, the body of the wedge W is very thin,so as not to materiallyincrease the thickness of the covers and form a swelling or bulge at thepoint where it is driven into said cover, while the head of the Wedge,or that portion thereof which lies in the slot of the bar,

is of tapering form and of increased thickness,

so that when said wedges are driven in flush with the faces of the bartheir heads will be securely wedged in the slots. The edges 9 of thebody of the wedge are also ground down.

to form knife-edges to facilitate their insertion into the cover 0, andinstead of the triangular wedges the rectilinear wedge, Fig. 11, may beemployed. No other fastening is required, since the bar is secured bothat its short and long arm, the wedges of the former lying at rightangles to the wedges of the latter within the thickness of the cover. Bythe frequent handling of the books these wedges might, however, workloose in the cover, and the weight ofthe longer side of the bar mightfinally draw them partially out of said cover. To avoid this I form ahole, w, in the end wedges of the long and short arm of the bar, or inall the wedges, through which and part of the cover a tack may be drivenfrom the inside of said cover.

Whenever the thickness of the cover permits the use of the screw-buttonS, I prefer to use it, as I. have found it to be the most convenient andmost secure fastening device.

Of course it will be understood that it is necessary only that the loweredges and cor ners of the covers of a book, orthose edges and cornersupon which the book stands, need be protected; yet the upper edges andcorners may be provided with guards also, if desired, to make theappearance of the book more symmetrical.

lhe application of the guards G to opposite edges and corners of the twoleaves of the cover will in costly bindings be an additional ornament,and for this purpose said guards may be plated with silver, gold, ornickel.

Vhen the guards are applied to one edge and corner of the leaves of thecover they also serve as a means whereby the standing of the book upsidedown upon a shelf is or may be avoided.

If desired, the flanged guard G shown in -Figs. 1, 2, and 4 may also beprovided with slots, and the fastener W may then be employed,inconjunction with the flange, to secure the bar to the cover-leaves.

Having now described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, 1s-- 1. Metallic guards for book-covers, comprising arectangular protecting-frame, with inwardly-projecting fastening deviceson both sides of said frame, and at a suitable distance from the outeredge thereof, substantially as described.

2. The rectangular bar G, having a flange, g, provided with holes y incombination with the screw-button S, substantially as and for thepurpose specified.

3. The combination, with the covers of a book, of guards, each having aflange along one of their edges, adapted when the guard is applied tothe right and left hand covers, to lie on the inside thereof, and means,substantially such as described, whereby said guards are attached to thecovers and leave no projecting points or surfaces upon the outsidethereof, as described.

In testimony whereofI affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

EDWARD T. GOVELL.

\Vitnesses:

SoU'ruwARD POTTER, 2d, EDWIN DEWS.

